The windows are closed, the blinds drawn and the fans going full force.

So far (12:40 pm on a Sunday afternoon), I'm still comfortable. Probably have to turn on the swamp cooler for awhile around 5:00pm. I was hoping (silly me) that the mild weather would continue. I should know better from living in Sacramento 20+ years. A summer without triple digits is not Sacramento.

Ah well...

I've been listing to Duke Ellington and other tapes from the 40s era. Nostalgia. I remember dancing to those tunes. I remember getting all weepy when I had to say goodbye to a boyfriend who was shipping out. Boise was an airbase town, so it was inevitable. There was a big, well-known ballroom in Los Angeles, The Palladium, where the Big Bands played. It was THE place to go on a date. Hmmm...seems I skipped something here.

OK. I graduated from high school in Boise. Worked a couple years until Sister could catch up with me and we went to college in Oregon. She went back to Idaho and I went to LA.

So that's how I came to be dancing at the Palladium. The current boyfriend was also a musician, so I got to meet some of the well-known bandleaders of the day. I met Les Paul before there was a Mary Ford hook-up. Also Les Brown before there was a Band of Renown. And a bunch of others. But that's a story for another time.

OK, so now I'm going back to the New York Times Sunday puzzle.

Shalom